Locals try to save (9) lives

A family of cats living in the alley behind Kathy Helfrich's store, Fashionista, pulled at her heartstrings.

She saw a dark gray cat poke its head from under a trash bin and meow at her. The cats were friendly and domesticated. There were three cats and two kittens, just trying to survive.

Dave Keller, owner of Keller Instrument Repair, 5 S. Main St., noticed the same feline family in the summer of 2011. They lived in a 6- to 8-inch crack between his store and the store next door, sharing the same alley as Fashionista.

"I felt sorry for them and started giving them food," Keller said.

Helfrich was doing the same, and the two ran into each other taking care of the cats in the alley.

"I said 'these guys can't stay here,' " Helfrich said.

Then one of the cats had kittens.

Helfrich wanted to get the cats off the street and into family homes. She also knew they needed to find a way to get the cats spayed and neutered. She and Jennifer Randall obtained humane traps from Central Kansas Veterinary Center (CKVC) and captured the cats in about a week.

"This was my first foray into animal rescue," Helfrich said.

'Fixing' the problem

Visitors to Keller's store might be greeted by the cat that Helfrich saw under the trash bin, and it's likely to glance their way with curious yellow eyes before darting away.

Keller remembers watching the colony of cats dash into the gap between businesses whenever a car would drive by on Main Street.

Now, the cat named Midnight is happiest minding her own business. She doesn't bother anybody.

"We're having fun," he said of his "assistant manager." "She's not a bit of a problem."

When Keller first brought Midnight to the store, he thought she was a boy. Then she had three kittens.

Soon after, Keller got Midnight spayed. The other cats in Midnight's colony were also spayed and neutered before they were adopted out - including Midnight's sibling, Smoky, which went home with Keller.

Cats can reproduce quickly. An unsprayed female cat, her mate and their offspring can produce 12 cats in a year, 67 cats in two years, 376 cats in three years and so on, according to Reno County's Cause for Paws. It's led to alteration programs in many areas, including Hutchinson with Cause for Paws' STOP program.

Helfrich and Randall started a grassroots effort to raise money to spay and neuter abandoned downtown cats. They know that other people are doing the same thing in their neighborhoods, and the Hutchinson Street Cat Society is a way to collaborate.

"Other people in the community do the same thing in their personal neighborhood," Randall said.

"You have to try to help them," Helfrich said. "Hopefully we can all work together."

Helping the cats

It's not always easy to see the cats that roam throughout downtown Hutchinson.

In the winter, they are usually hidden.

"They tend to hole up somewhere to stay warm and survive," Randall said.

Every year, the CKVC participates in spay day where they pick up colonies of cats to spay and neuter before releasing them back to the same area they were found.

While that is beneficial to decreasing the feral cat population, it's not enough.

"The Hutchinson Street Cat Society's mission is to lessen the growing homeless cat population and the suffering of these felines living on the streets," Helfrich said. "We are striving to raise awareness and educate people about this national program."

It takes nearly $100 for each cat to be spayed or neutered, Helfrich said. A fund has been set up through CKVC called CatSNIP (Spay/Neuter Initiative Project). Donations can be made at the veterinary clinic, 515 W. Blanchard Ave., South Hutchinson, KS 67505.

At noon today, bidding will end for a painting at CKVC. Proceeds will go to the CatSNIP fund.

For more information on the Hutchinson Street Cat Society, message the Facebook group at http://tinyurl.com/streetcatFacebook or see Helfrich at Fashionista, 14 W. Ave. A.

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